Gangster State

that I was looking into the matter. I later learnt that, over the years,
Magashule contacted other journalists in a similar fashion. To me, this
conduct betrayed a degree of nervousness about the media’s interest in
his province’s affairs. His apparent habit of contacting reporters also
carried a hint of subtle intimidation. At least one Free State journalist I
spoke to claimed to have abandoned an investigation into a provincial
tender after receiving such a call.
Magashule had every reason to be worried about nosy journalists. I
believe the government deals unpacked in this book, along with
previous revelations, sufficiently implicate him as the head of a well-
organised state-capture network in his home province.
Compared to the most prominent tender bandits in national
government, however, Magashule’s anxiety must have been
considerably more manageable during his stint as premier. For a start,
Jacob Zuma’s time in charge of the country saw government’s law-
enforcement arm become as ineffective as a gangrened limb. There was
no need for the likes of Magashule to be concerned about being
investigated or brought to book. Media outlets, civil society
organisations and the general public, meanwhile, were largely focused
on scandals involving Zuma, his state-capture enablers and rent-
seeking at national departments and large state-owned companies such
as Transnet and Eskom. Public-sector looters and their private-sector
accomplices in provinces like the Free State were left to execute their
schemes without drawing too much attention. While there have been
great examples of investigative work on Magashule and his
administration over the years, such reports have been too sporadic to
produce the sustained outrage and pressure necessary to bring about
meaningful change.